This invention relates to a solar battery module and to a method of manufacturing the same. More particularly, the invention relates to a solar battery module having solar batteries and a power converter, a method of manufacturing the same and a power generating apparatus using this solar battery module.
In an effort to tackle environmental problems, many types of solar power generating apparatus have been installed in recent years. Such an apparatus converts DC power, which has been generated by solar batteries, to AC power using an inverter, and supplies this AC power to a domestic load (hereinafter referred to simply as a xe2x80x9cloadxe2x80x9d and/or a commercial power system (hereinafter referred to simply as a xe2x80x9csystemxe2x80x9d).
A solar power generating apparatus of this kind is noteworthy also as an emergency power supply for use at the time of disasters such as earthquakes. A type of solar power generating apparatus that has appeared recently is detached from the system and is allowed to run independently to supply power to a load in the event of a power outage caused by an earthquake, system malfunction or maintenance.
Furthermore, an AC module is noteworthy as a small- to medium-size solar power generating apparatus or emergency power supply. Such an AC module includes an inverter, which is referred to as an MIC (Module Integrated Converter), attached to the back side of a solar power generating apparatus and adapted to convert DC power generated by solar batteries to AC power. Such an AC module makes it possible for a single solar battery module to output AC power.
The inverter included in the AC module can be attached to the solar battery module by various methods, such as mounting it directly on the back side of the solar battery module, connecting it to a terminal box or securing it to a frame, as described in the specification of Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-271179.
If the inverter is attached to the back side of the solar battery module, however, various problems arise. Specifically, the inverter becomes an obstacle to transport and installation, it may be broken if it strikes a building structure at the time of installation and it may malfunction owing to impact with an object.
The present invention has been devised in order to solve, individually or collectively, the problems of the prior art described above, and an object thereof is to prevent damage to and a decline in the reliability of a power converter when a solar battery module is transported and installed.
According to the present invention, the foregoing object is attained by providing a solar battery device comprising: a solar battery; a power converter arranted to convert power output from the solar battery, wherein the solar battery and the power converter are integrated; and a metal plate for mounting the integrated solar battery and the power converter; wherein the power converter is placed at a position intermediate the solar battery and the metal plate.
Other features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters designate the same or similar parts throughout the figures thereof.